Still dazed after being anaesthetised for three hours, a pedigree pet is hauled upright to show off its new tattoo. The controversial “body enhancement” was carried out on Mickey – a rare Canadian Hairless breed also known as a Sphynx cat. His female owner was said to be delighted with the Tutankhamun design inked on to his chest at a tattoo parlour.

She said: “I wanted something new and different for the times we live in.” But horrified animal rights campaigners last night slammed the sick fad in Moscow as barbaric – and fear it could catch on among wealthy pet owners in the West.

It's a Sphynx cat. Get it? Get it? Sphinx? Like the Egyptian thing? Yeah!

02 August 2011

Gladiator graffiti from Ephesos Terrace House 2. That's the retiarius with his spear and net on the right and the secutorwith his shield and funny-looking helmet on the left. Apparently the secutor was supposed to look like a fish, with the retiarius as the fisherman. Kind of a sick metaphor for a bloodsport, but that was the Romans for you, they liked their cruelty dressed up in pastoral sentimentality.

Thanks to Sinan Ilhan for the behind-the-scenes tour that let me get this close!

About Archaeopop

Archaeopop is a blog by Daniel Shoup about archaeology and popular culture. I like the strange ways the past gets recycled into the present as art, economics, politics, and straight-up trash. I'm a researcher at the University of Bologna, Italy. Follow me on Twitter (@archaeopop) or get in touch at archaeopop@gmail.com.